Walk for Water Pictures

                           
 

Walk for Water

I am visiting Kenya, Africa. I did not come to Kenya to have a "luxury" vacation, but to experience the women's every day chores. I am visiting Kirabo, Dayo, Farai and Ife. Kirabo is the mom, Dayo is a friend of the Kirabo, Farai is a 13 year old girl and the daughter of Kirabo and Ife is the little sister. Right now I am going to explain my favorite and most labor intense job. 


I woke up at 5:55, got dress and went into the kitchen, to find Kirabo already making breakfast, which happened to be rice with toppings. I ate it quickly and got ready for our walk. We started walking at 6:15. I was not wearing shoes, because I did not think it was fair if I did and they did not, because they could not afford them. Kirabo had invited her friend Dayo because she was strong and could carry more water. Farai and Ife were already sitting outside, when we stepped out of the house, so off we were to the water hole seven miles away on endless terrain. My feet were throbbing but eventually they got numb and I could not feel them. We talked quickly until we reached the water hole. We were there before the other villagers arrived, we were lucky! It took us a long time to fill up the jugs and other bottles that we could scavenge. I had also brought a 2 gallon container as a present for them. They were very thankful because  it was harder for them in AFrica to get containers then I am in the United States of America. We got the water from a hole that had been dug up with water seeping up. Other villagers were starting to arrive but luckily we were finished filling up our bottles. We started walking back  so Farai and Ife could hopefully get back in time to get to school before it was over. By now it was 9:30. We walked and walked and walked, while talking and teaching each other songs. We passed many other women on the way all with different ways of carrying their water, that their family depended on. My back was aching in pain and I'm sure Kirabo, Dayo, Farai and Ife's were in pain too, but they new better then to complain, because it would just slow us down. By 12:00 we were back, and Farai and Ife could still go to school for half the day. They were happy  about this, but I was sad that they do not get to go for school for the full day. When we got back I was tired and went to sleep. I thought about how this is all the water we had and if we wanted more then we would have to go back again, probably tomorrow or the day after.

 

Day Three

Today was my last day so I wanted to go to visit all the other members of the group while they were working. I really liked helping run the stores, making and seeing the beautiful and cute handicrafts.  I also liked weaving sheets, but thought that it was very hard work. Now I will think of the this time I spent helping make sheets when go home and lay down on my bed. My favorite place I saw today was watching and helping the farmer, raise animals. Today was a great day and I learned a lot about what women in Guatemala do to make money. For me this trip was filled with lots of emotion especially when I realized how hard some people work to make money and are still happy.

*emotion

Day Two

Today Gregoria and I are going to work. I am going to help her make her make her beautiful sweatshirts. After waking up and having some breakfast that we had bought at the market the day before we got ready to work. The meal she made smelled and tasted so good. She had dedicated a part of her house as her sweatshirt making factory. When we got into her little factory she pointed out the exact fabrics that she had bought with the loan from Kiva. The colors of the fabric really lit up the room. 
  

The sweatshirts felt so soft when I touched them. The first I did was, watch her show me the steps, then I got a chance to try. We talked for a while and before we knew it, it was almost dinner. It was fun to get to talk to her and get to practice my Spanish and let her practice her English. It was a great experience to see how she works so hard. Right after we were done working she offered me a sweatshirt. I took it and insisted on paying her. I also bought another one for my sister and my S0cial Studies teacher John, because when I was looking for someone to fund and showed him the Superaction group he said he wanted one.

      *smell

      *touch

      *people

      *souvenir

Day One

Today I get to actually meet Gregoria Mercedes Pec Mejia and the rest of the Superaction Group. their names are Isabel Osorio Tuy De Chan, Antonia Cux Elias, Paula Ajin Tecum De Mejia, Santos Estebana Mejia Chay De Pec, Catarina Ulin Choz, Santa Cite Renoj, Santos Petrona Xic Ajin De Mejia, Santa Mejia Tecum De Xec, Ana Felipa Ulin Juarez De Chay, Marta Chay Juarez, Petrona Mejia Ajin, Maria Victoriana Cosinero Chan , Francisca Victoriana Chan Vicente, Juana Chan Osorio De Renoj, Macaria Santos Cosinero Chan, Sebastiana Chay Ulin and Maria Angelina Marroquin Urbina.





As soon as we got settled and I had a chance to meet each and every one of them, they took me to the food market. We even got to see a few of the stores that some of the women own. We saw a variety of different foods including vegetables, chills, bananas, and other fruits. I tried a little of everything. Some things were delicious, others were sweet, spicy and plain.


There was also clothing, flowers, handicrafts and people playing music. The sound of the fun spanish style music made me want to dance! 




    




*Sound and Taste

Introduction on Superaction Group

Today I get to meet Superaction Group. This is a group of women in Totonicapan, Guatemala who make sweatshirt, make handicrafts from clay, weave sheets, raise animals and run stores. The lady who founded it and is in charge of the group is named Gregoria Mercedes. She is only 20 years old and is single. She went to school from age seven to fourteen, which is called 'education primaria'. She has six years experience, so that means right after graduating 'education primaria' she started working. She makes sweatshirts and with the money I lent her she is going to improve her sweatshirt production. She hope that in the future she will have a large business and will be able to hire workers, I hope so too. 

 

Currency

$1 is 7.73 Guatemalan Quetzal (GTQ)

Communication

Ten phrases I want to know in Guatemalan Spanish:  Diez frases que quiero saber en el español de Guatemala:


My name is Deryn. ----Mi nombre es Deryn
Hello--- ¡Hola!
Thank you--- Gracias
Please--- Por favor
Where is the bathroom?--- ¿Dónde está el baño?
How do I get there?--- ¿Cómo llegar?
friends--- amigos 
I live in the United States. ---Yo vivo en los Estados Unidos.
restaurant--- restaurante
Do you speak English?---¿Hablas Inglés?

Transportation to Guatemala

I get to go to Totonicapan, Guatemala. I am going to get there by plane. I was lucky that there was a plane to Guatemala. Although after I arrive there I have to take a taxi to Totonicapan. The airport that I arrive to is called, La Aurora International Airport. It is about 98 km from Totonicapan.

My Hero's Journey

One day a 10 year old girl named Carly was in her grandma's house. Carly was looking for a book to read when she came across a family album. Right as she took it off the shelf a picture came tumbling out. She stared at it for a while. It was a picture she had never seen and was very curious of how the babies in the picture were of. They were with a mom and a dad that looked like her parents and she suspected that one of the babies could be her, which just happened to be the cute one. On the other hand the other one was a little odd looking. Carly went to ask her grandma who this picture was of. When her grandma saw the picture Carly could see her eyes watering up and though this is not good. Her grandma told Carly to sit down and then spilled the whole story out. It turned out that when Carly was born so was her twin sister named Eliana. At birth Eliana had brain problems, had six fingers on one hand, and would never be the same as other children. It was just to much for Carly's parents to handle so they had gave her away to the adoption center for children with illnesses. Carly had always wanted a sister and had a plan to go find Eliana. She was about to just stomp right out of the house and begin looking but decided she better find some more out. She though she might also regret it. That night at dinner Carly asked her parents about Eliana. Her parents were mad at the grandma and only told her little. She was a little scared to go on this journey but decided it was worth a try. She set of the next week.

Her first challenge was the Carly had no idea were to go and how to get there. She had brought a back pack with food, water, a phone, money, a map and the picture. Carly's parents were not excited about her journey and tried to hold her back, but Carly was determined. Although deeply inside Carly was going to miss her parents and especially her grandma even thought her grandma was proud of her for going on this quest and encouraged it. Carly felt that this was truly her task. 


Well anyways Carly walked to the closest train station and got on. The people that worked on the train wondered about her being alone but she convinced to let her get on. She thought that a lot of people would ask her that same question, so on the train she thought of what she would say. On the train the man sitting next to her started up a conversation. at first she thought he was mean and scary but then realized that he was actually quiet nice. She reluctantly told him her story. To Carly's surprise he actually gave her some advice. He told her that the closest adoption center for children with illnesses was around 450 miles away. She was just about to start questioning him when he said he had to go and got off the train. 


Carly had found out exactly where this adoption center was and had been traveling for about two weeks when she saw the man again. She slowly approached him and started to talk to him. From the conversation with him she kind of figured out that he might know something more than he had revealed. 


After that she got on the bus at a bus stop and rode that for the entire rest of the day, that night and until ten o'clock the next day. She got off the bus and realizes that it is a creepy town in the middle of no where. This place looks like it could be some place from the past or maybe in the future. Carly is creeped out. She runs and runs and runs and finally sees s sign with the name of the town that could possibly have the adoption center. Carly is relived, but now she has to go find the adoption center. To Carly's surprise she was having really good luck and their it was right before her eyes, she just hoped this was not an elusion!


She went right in and headed straight for the play room, but the security stopped her and asked her what she was doing. She told her that she was looking for her sister Eliana. The lady at the front desk said that she was adopted three years ago. If Carly could answer a few questions they would tell her what family adopted her and how she could reach them. Luckily she could. She thanked them and then headed for the address the lady had given her.


After a little walk Carly finally reached 3481 West Cheyenne Boulevard. She proudly rang the door bell and then the door opened. A lady answered the door and told her she did not want solicitors but then Cary told her about her journey. The lady thought for a few minutes and then started asking her question. She told her to go away but in the end Carly convinced her. Well actually that is not not exactly how it went, actually a girl came to a door and started hugging Carly. As you might be able to tell that girl was Eliana. Carly thought that it just might be an accident and that she jut hugged people, but actually Eliana new because she had a picture that she looked at every night.


That night Carly stayed with Eliana's family. Eliana was a little different but Carly did not care. Right away they found love in each other. They were meant for each other, well they were twins. Eliana's dad said he would drive them home so he could meet her birth family and make an agreement. They decided that they should go to the grandmas house because she was the one who really cared. They decided that Carly, Eliana and Eliana's dad would stay with the grandma that night and then go the next day to meet the parents.  The next morning when Carly woke up she was excited her journey was over, but then realized that Eliana was not in her bed. Carly told her grandma who told Eliana's dad, he said that she loves to run and often goes missing but comes home, sometimes not for 24 hours but sometimes sooner. Well Carly really wanted to see Eliana so Carly and her grandma went looking. Carly was so sad and realized that she is a person who is caring and loving. 


Two hours later Eliana came home and the two families decided that Eliana would go back and forth from the two families every two weeks. They lived happily ever after.

My Visit with Maruge in Eldoret, Kenya- Day Eight

What I learned: 
First, Maruge and his family and some friends dropped me off at the airport, said our farewells and I had then successfully gotten on the plane and was headed home. Well actually there was not a direct flight to Santa Barbara or even Los Angeles from the Eldoret airport. I began thinking about the things I had learned. I remembered all the times I had spent with Maruge and tried to come up with the most important thing I had learned. I remember from day one the new faces, games, and dances. The wonderful meal from day two and the taste and smell of the new foods and the women singing in the kitchen. How it was like to go to school at  Kapkenduiywo Primary School when I went on day three. The new words in Swahili Maruge taught me on day four. The conversation I had with Teacher Jane and what she had told me about Maruge on day five. Then when I went on a walk with Maruge in the African Forest and had an very emotional conversation with him while he would stop to point out the plants and animals and why they were important in their lives or if they were poisonous on day six. And on the day before I left- day seven when I had seen how some of the villagers make their money by vending on the street but not like in some other places where they beg for you to buy it, they mostly just wanted me to see there work and talent. But then I thought and I realized the most important thing I had learned was determination. I new Maruge was determined from the beginning and from watching the movie The First Grader, but it was much different actually witnessing it and talking to Teacher Jane and Maruge himself.
uamuzi- determination in Swahili

My Visit with Maruge in Eldoret, Kenya- Day Seven

Tomorrow was my last day, so today we relaxed and got all the stuff done that I wanted to do before I left this wonderful place of Eldoret, Kenya. But hopefully I would return some day. Then we went to get me an souvenier. I was so excited but did not want to take anything major that he and his family might need. So we decided to go look for something in his village. Along the street there was a women and her two children selling handmade scarfs. I got a yellow, pink, orange, and purple with a little bit of black. I liked it because it was the most colorfu plus my favoite colors. I also liked how soft they were. 

My Visit with Maruge in Eldoret, Kenya- Day Six

Today we slept in and then went in a walk in the woods. It was more like a long trek. We talked about what are lives were like and some of our most memorable experiences. We had a very emotional coversation. In a way it was kind of like the conversation I had with Teacher Jane, but the only difference was that it was from Maruge's point of iew. This made it not all about him and about other people who had helped him and inpired him greatly. I asked him what made him so determined to go to school and get an education. He said that it was because he wanted to be able to read the letter that was sent to him from the president. Then I asked him why it was so important that he read it himself. His answer was that it would be more special and important and he also just wanted to learn how to read. This conversation was very interesting and another bonus was that we got to see lots of different wildlife, animal and plants.
We even saw a gorilla!

This was our destination! It was a swamp with elephants in it.

My visit with Maruge in Eldoret, Kenya- Day Five

This is teacher Jane, the main teacher:

Today Maruge took me to school again, but today he gave me a chance to meet his teachers and visit with them. They were truly amazing people. I got to talk with Teacher Jane, Teacher Alfred, and Teacher Elizabeth. My favorite was Teacher Jane, who shared inspirational stories, memories, and advice, that I will always remember. She shared kind words and stories about her life as well as how Maruge influenced and encouraged and fascinated her. This made me so happy to hear and just her stories inspired me greatly. I did not want to leave at the end of our session. 

My Visit to see Maruge in Eldoret, Kenya- Day Four

Today Marge gave me a lesson of of his language Swahili.
Here are some of the words he taught me:


tafadhali----please
asante---thank you
Marekani---united states of america
safari      ---trip
marafiki    --- friends
familia---family
watu---children
wanawake---women
watu---men
mimea---plants
wanyama---animals
nguo---clothes
chakula---food
maji---water
fedha---money
bafuni---bathroom
amani   ---peace
upendo---love
vita---war
maelekezo---directions
magari---cars
usafiri---transporttation
baiskeli---bike
shule---school
mwalimu---teacher
mwanafunzi---student
Here is also a video:

My Visit to see Maruge in Eldoret, Kenya- Day Three

Today being my third day Maruge was going to show and let me go with school with him to Kapkenduiywo Primary School. We went to class and we practiced our writing, reading, and math. The feel in me and the the physical touch was very different than the school I attend Santa Barbara Middle School. The classrooms were different and crowded and everyone was crammed together. At break it was also fun to run around with the other kids that attend the school. It was also much dirtier. But I am not saying these are bad things and it was a super fun experience.

My Visit to See Maruge in Eldoret, Kenya- Day Two

The next morning I woke up early but was surprised to see a few women already cooking our breakfast. They were also singing a joyful song and dancing when they were cooking. I asked them what food they were making and they said: ugali, cassava which they told me was from their garden, roasted groundnuts, mendazi and a black tea with milk. The taste of this wonderful meal was a simple but delicious meal!It also smelled good! It was interesting to see the women dance and sing! I still have that songs and sounds that they were singing and making stuck in my head!

My Visit to See Maruge in Eldoret, Kenya- Day One

When I arrived in Eldoret, Kenya to see Maruge I was amazed by all the wonderful things and sights to look at. I enjoyed all the new faces of all the women and men that greeted me and all the children running around having fun and playing games and dancing. I also liked the chickens running freely around, the locals huts with clay stoves clay stoves. All these wonderful sights made me sure that there were a lot of things to do and explore around this village that I was curious about. I was also excited that I would finally get to meet Kimani Ng'ang'a Maruge, who was the oldest person to go to Primary School at age 84 and have him show me the primary school and all around the village.

My Amazing Stop at Eldoret, Kenya

After I had left South Sudan from my visit with Panther Bior, I stopped to spend some time in Nairobi, Kenya. Then I went to the town of where Kapkenduiywo Primary School was located, which is Eldoret. In Eldoret I spent some time with Marque and joined him and the first graders at the school. Here is a map of Eldoret!

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